You're listening to an AirWave Media Podcast.

Ben Franklin's World is a production of the Omahundro Institute and a sponsor by the Colonial Wingsburg Foundation.

Hello and welcome to episode 334 of Ben Franklin's World.

The podcast dedicated to helping you learn more about how the people and events of our early American past have shaped the present day world we live in.

And I'm your host, Liz Covard.

Although many of us view early American history through the eyes of the English and later British,

Spanish explorers and colonists visited, settled, and claimed territory in 42 of the 50 states that now comprise the United States.

When thought of this way, it seems clear that we should view much of the history of early America through a Spanish lens in point of view.

And that's what we're going to do today.

Brandon Bain, an associate professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill,

joins us to investigate some of the religious aspects of Spanish colonization.

Specifically, we're going to explore Spanish missionaries, their work, and why this work was carried out by just a few religious orders.

Namely, the Franciscans and the Jesuits.

Now during our exploration, Brandon reveals information about New Spain, its borderlands, and the ways in which Spanish and indigenous peoples interacted within those borderlands.

The work of Catholic missionaries and Spain's use of missionaries as instruments of colonization.

And details about the Jesuits, their work in New Spain, and why the Spanish crown ultimately expelled the Jesuits from New Spain in 1767.

But first, I'll be in New Orleans this Saturday, July 23rd, and I'll be hosting a meet-up at Pat O'Brien's Restaurant at 4pm.

Meet-ups are a really fun way for me to get to know you and for you to get to know me, and for you to have the chance to meet other listeners who share your interest in early American history.

As we are meeting at a restaurant, please let me know if you're coming or if you think you'll be coming.

You can RSVP at benfranklandsworld.com slash meet-up.

That's benfranklandsworld.com slash meet-up and I'll reserve us a table so we can sit and chat.

All right, are you ready to venture into the history of New Spain and its missionary work?

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